Container fitment

ABSTRACT

A fitment is described for a foodstuffs container having a mouth with a surrounding rim that projects radially beyond the walls of the container. The fitment comprises an injection moulded plastics ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall for making sealing contact with the radially outer surface of the rim. At least one retaining portion projects radially inwards from the ring to engage the underside of the rim and thereby hold the fitment against the mouth of the container. The container is sealed by adhering a foil seal to the upper surface of the ring or the rim of the container.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a tamper evident fitment for a container having a mouth with a surrounding rim that projects radially beyond the walls of the container.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is common for foodstuffs containers to be sealed in such a manner that once they have been opened they cannot be resealed. The contents are intended to be consumed as soon as the container has been opened and not stored for use at a later time. Examples of such foodstuffs are yoghurt, desserts and quick snacks such as soups and noodles.

Conventionally, such containers are sealed by adhering a foil seal directly to the upper surface of the rim. The foil seal may be made of a metal, a plastics coated metal or a plastics material. A replaceable cover is sometimes fitted over the foil seal.

A disadvantage of such a container is that it does not at the time of purchase provide clear proof of tampering as evidence of tampering is disguised once the fitment has been replaced.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

With a view to mitigating the foregoing disadvantage, there is provided, in accordance with a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a tamper evident fitment for a foodstuffs container having a base, side walls extending from the base, a mouth at the end of the side walls remote from the base, a rim surrounding the mouth and projecting radially beyond the walls of the container and a foil sealingly secured to the mouth of the container, wherein the tamper evident fitment comprises an injection moulded plastics ring for fitting over the rim of the container to inhibit access to the edge of the foil while permitting the central part of the foil to be seen, the ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall to contact the radially outer surface of the rim, and at least one retaining portion projecting radially inwards from the ring to engage the underside of the rim and hold the ring over the mouth of the container.

In this aspect of the invention, while the ring is in place, the perimeter of the foil is inaccessible and it cannot therefore be peeled away from the rim of the container. If the foil is punctured to gain access to the contents of the container then this will be immediately apparent at the time of purchase. The ring has to be broken before it can be removed from the container and damage to the ring will again be immediately apparent at the time of purchase.

In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided A tamper evident fitment for a foodstuffs container having a base, side walls extending from the base, a mouth at the end of the side walls remote from the base, and a rim surrounding the mouth and projecting radially beyond the walls of the container, wherein the fitment comprises an injection moulded plastics ring for fitting over the rim of the container, the ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall for making sealing contact with the radially outer surface of the rim, and at least one retaining portion projecting radially inwards from the ring for engaging the underside of the rim and holding the ring over the mouth of the container, and a foil formed separately from the ring and sealingly secured to the ring to cover the open centre of the ring.

The second aspect of the invention differs from the first only in that the foil is fitted to the ring rather than the rim of the container. If the ring is broken or if the sealing foil is damaged in any way, the tampering will be immediately evident at the time of purchase.

A seal is formed in the second aspect of the present invention by an interference fit between an inner wall of the ring and the radially outer surface of the rim at the mouth of the container. Because of the normal manner in which the containers are formed (they are usually thermoformed and cut from a web) they tend to have a sharp edge on their rim that bites into the ring of the fitment to provide an effective seal.

The retaining portion may either be circumferentially continuous or several retaining portions may be provided in close proximity to one another, to prevent the ring from being separated from the container without it being visibly damaged in the process.

If the foil seal is adhered to the fitment rather than the container, then because it presents a larger area to which the foil seal can be adhered, it is possible to ensure that the entire circumference of the foil seal is securely adhered to the fitment so that no part of it can be gripped to enable the foil seal to be peeled away without leaving clear evidence of tampering.

It is preferred to provide a weakened portion on the ring so that its inner wall engaging the rim of the container can be intentionally broken when the fitment is to be removed. Once the wall ceases to be circumferentially continuous, the interference fit with the rim is destroyed and the fitment can be raised with relative ease.

It is possible to form the ring integrally with a utensil, such as a spoon to facilitate the consumption of the contents of the container.

The utensil may be connected to the ring by means of a hinge so that it can lie against the wall of the container when in storage.

The hinge preferably has an over-centre or toggle action so that the utensil is biased into two stable positions, the utensil being in the same plane as the ring in the first stable position and being urged against the outer wall of the container in the second stable position. In this way, the utensil and ring can readily be moulded in the first position while still allowing the utensil to be bent into the second position which is more convenient for storage of the containers.

It is advantageous for the utensil to be attached to the weakened portion of the ring so that it can be used to apply leverage when breaking the seal between the container and the fitment.

The invention additionally provides in accordance with a third aspect a method of sealing a foodstuff container which comprises providing a foodstuff container having a mouth with a surrounding rim that projects radially beyond the walls of the container, fitting to the mouth of the container an injection moulded plastics ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall to make sealing contact with the radially outer surface of the rim and having at least one retaining portion projecting radially inwards from the ring to engage the underside of the rim, and adhering a foil seal to the upper surface of the ring after the foodstuff has been introduced into the container.

In the method aspect of the invention, the container may be filled with the foodstuff either before or after the step of fitting the ring but the filling must of course be completed before the foil seal has covered the mouth of the container.

The invention offers the additional advantage that it simplifies production when the lid carries printed matter in that all the printing can now be carried out on the flat foil seal. There is no need to load different lids when using different foodstuffs and the same rings can be used regardless of the contents of the containers. After the containers have been filled, the foil seal bearing the appropriate printed matter may be adhered to the ring to seal the contents of container.

By fitting the ring to the container after it has been filled, it is possible to avoid any risk of the foodstuff splashing on to, or otherwise coming into contact with, the surface to which the foil seal is to be adhered thereby reducing any likelihood of the foil seal not adhering properly to the plastics ring.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a container and a fitment of present invention,

FIG. 2 is a partial section through the fitment,

FIG. 3 is a partial section through the container,

FIG. 4 is a partial section of the container with the fitment in place,

FIG. 5 is a perspective view from above of a weakened portion of the fitment,

FIG. 6 is a perspective view from below of the weakened portion of the fitment,

FIG. 7 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2 through the weakened portion of the fitment,

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a container fitted with an alternative form of fitment incorporating an eating utensil,

FIG. 9 is a section through the hinge connecting the eating utensil to the fitment in the embodiment of FIG. 8,

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the hinge of FIG. 9 shown in an alternative position, and

FIG. 11 is a view similar to that of FIG. 1 showing an alternative embodiment of the invention in which the foil is adhered to the container instead of the fitment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 to 7 show a container 10 having a rim 16 surrounding its mouth. The rim 16 projects beyond the side walls of the container 10 and is formed with a sharp edge 18. The sharp edge 18 results from the container normally having been formed by being been cut from a thermoformed sheet.

The tamper evident fitment for the container comprises an injection moulded ring 12. The term “ring” is used to signify an annulus with an open centre, but it is not essential for it to be circular, its shape being dependent upon the shape of the container. The container is sealed by a foil 14 that is shown in the drawings as being adhered to the ring 12 but it may alternatively be adhered to the mouth of the container, as shown in FIG. 11, so that only its perimeter is covered by the ring 12. The foil seal 14 may be formed of metal, plastics or a plastics coated metal.

The ring 12 has an inner wall 22 which is dimensioned to form an interference fit with the outer circumference of the rim 16. As a result, when the fitment is fitted to the container 10, as shown in FIG. 4, the sharp edge 18 of the rim 16 bites into the wall 22 and forms an airtight seal.

To hold the fitment over the mouth of the container 10, the skirt 26 of the ring 12 has a radially inwardly projecting retaining portion 20 that engages under the rim 16. The retaining portion 20 may be a single continuous projection but, for ease of manufacture, it is preferred that it be discontinuous.

The fitment as so far described can only be removed from the container 10 once fitted by breaking the ring 12 to destroy the interference fit between the fitment 12 and the container 10. Such breaking of the ring 12 would of course be readily perceived at the point of sale.

To assist in the removal of the fitment, it is intentionally provided with a weakened portion designated 30 in the drawings. The weakened portion 30 is shown in more detail in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7. In particular the skirt 26 has cut-outs 32 that define a flap 36. The flap 36 is surrounded by a recess 34 which allows the flap 36 to be hinged upwards, as viewed in FIG. 5, at the same time cracking the wall 22 in two places where it mates with the rim 16 of the container 10.

The embodiment of FIGS. 8, 9 and 10 differs from that previously described in that the ring 12′ has a weakened portion which is formed integrally with a spoon 40. The spoon 40 is connected to the skirt 26′ at the weakened portion by means of a hinge 42 that has an over centre action. In particular, the spoon 40 is connected at three different hinge lines 50, 52, 54 to the ring 12′. An L-shaped hinge member 56 acts as the spring of a toggle which is at its maximum extension when the three hinge lines 50, 52 and 54 all lie in the same plane.

The spoon 40 and the fitment 12′ are moulded in the position in which they are shown in FIG. 10, that is to say with the spoon 40 in the same plane as the ring 12′. After fitting the ring 12′ to the container 10, the spoon 40 is bent downwards into the position shown in FIGS. 8 & 9, whereupon the resilience of the member 56 will bias the spoon 40 against the wall of the container.

Aside from providing a useful utensil to facilitate eating of the contents of the container, the spoon 40 can be used as a lever to assist in breaking the ring 12′ at its weakened portion.

The fitment may be applied to the container in two parts during production. First the ring 12 or 12′ is first fitted to the container 10 and thereafter the foil seal 14 is adhered to the ring. The ring 12, 12′ may be fitted to the container 10 either before or after it has been filled but the foil seal cannot of course be applied until after the container has been filled. If the ring 12, 12′ is fitted after the filling operation, the risk of contamination of the surface to which the foil seal 14 adheres is avoided.

It will be seen that the invention provides a fitment that cannot be removed from a container without leaving a tell-tale sign of the tampering. Furthermore, the invention dispenses with the need to print on individually formed fitments as the printing can be applied to the foil seal while it is still in a continuous sheet form, that is to say before it has been separated into separate discs. 

1-9. (canceled)
 10. A tamper evident fitment for a foodstuffs container having a base, side walls extending from the base, a mouth at the end of the side walls remote from the base, a rim surrounding the mouth and projecting radially beyond the walls of the container and a foil sealingly secured to the mouth of the container, wherein the tamper evident fitment comprises an injection moulded plastics ring for fitting over the rim of the container to inhibit access to the edge of the foil while permitting the central part of the foil to be seen, the ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall to contact the radially outer surface of the rim, and at least one retaining portion projecting radially inwards from the ring to engage the underside of the rim and hold the ring over the mouth of the container:
 11. A fitment as claimed in claim 10, wherein a weakened portion is provided on the ring to assist in breaking of the inner wall engaging the rim of the container when the fitment is to be removed.
 12. A fitment as claimed in claim 10, wherein the ring is formed integrally with a utensil to facilitate the consumption of the contents of the container.
 13. A fitment as claimed in claim 12, wherein the utensil is connected to the ring by means of a hinge.
 14. A fitment as claimed in claim 13, wherein the hinge has an over-centre or toggle action so that the utensil is biased into two stable positions, the utensil being in the same plane as the ring in the first stable position and being urged against the outer wall of the container in the second stable position.
 15. A fitment as claimed in claim 14 wherein a weakened portion is provided on the ring to assist in breaking of the inner wall engaging the rim of the container when the fitment is to be removed and wherein the utensil is attached to the weakened portion of the ring.
 16. A tamper evident fitment for a foodstuffs container having a base, side walls extending from the base, a mouth at the end of the side walls remote from the base, and a rim surrounding the mouth and projecting radially beyond the walls of the container, wherein the fitment comprises an injection moulded plastics ring for fitting over the rim of the container, the ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall for making sealing contact with the radially outer surface of the rim, and at least one retaining portion projecting radially inwards from the ring for engaging the underside of the rim and holding the ring over the mouth of the container, and a foil formed separately from the ring and sealingly secured to the ring to cover the open centre of the ring.
 17. A fitment as claimed in claim 16, wherein a weakened portion is provided on the ring to assist in breaking of the inner wall engaging the rim of the container when the fitment is to be removed.
 18. A fitment as claimed in claim 16, wherein the ring is formed integrally with a utensil to facilitate the consumption of the contents of the container.
 19. A fitment as claimed in claim 18, wherein the utensil is connected to the ring by means of a hinge.
 20. A fitment as claimed in claim 19, wherein the hinge has an over-centre or toggle action so that the utensil is biased into two stable positions, the utensil being in the same plane as the ring in the first stable position and being urged against the outer wall of the container in the second stable position.
 21. A fitment as claimed in claim 20, wherein a weakened portion is provided on the ring to assist in breaking of the inner wall engaging the rim of the container when the fitment is to be removed and wherein the utensil is attached to the weakened portion of the ring.
 22. A method of sealing a foodstuff container which comprises providing a foodstuff container having a mouth with a surrounding rim that projects radially beyond the walls of the container, fitting to the mouth of the container an injection moulded plastics ring having a circumferentially continuous cylindrical inner wall to make sealing contact with the radially outer surface of the rim and having at least one retaining portion projecting radially inwards from the ring to engage the underside of the rim, and adhering a foil seal to the upper surface of the ring after the foodstuff has been introduced into the container.
 23. A method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the container is filled after the step of fitting the ring. 